Tag: Tracy Mooney

So, there’s this!

thank you 2Maddie Kertay, and Cheryl Sleboda encouraged me to submit classes for Fall Quilt Market. After some thought I submitted three classes, and two are accepted. First up on Saturday October 28 is Creating Consumer Confidence—Machine Sales; the second is Sunday October 29th Creating Confidence in the In-Store Talent. Having worked in quilt shops on and off for the last 9 years I’ve watched, experienced, and listened to the needs of the shops, owners, employees, and the customer. Each is important, playing a key role in the success of the shop. Thank you to Quilts, Inc for seeing the value in these classes, and to Maddie and Cheryl for encouraging me to submit these classes. Maddie, will be teaching as will Ebony Love, Pepper Cory, Tracy Mooney, Dave Gilleland, Teresa Coates and so many great people. (Some will be Schoolhouse presentations or Take & Teach classes.) I look forward to seeing you there. 

Debby has shared, and we’ve talked about 1000 Postcards for Peace. I have the first one made, and decided about fifteen minutes ago, to make two more in the next few days. I don’t yet know where they are going, however I’ll be making postcards. The why isn’t as important as there are things in life that call for a moment of something (hopefully) good. Please feel free to join us in this effort.

Last week I started this Opal Dahlia designed by Jeanie Sumrall-Ajero by Hoffman Fabrics. After several false quilting starts, including thinking I wanted to stitch an overall meander, I settled on this:

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It took a little bit to get here, sometimes ya know that something simple is good, but what that simple is isn’t quite clear. With a little focus this will be finished tomorrow before I focus on a few other things.

Happy Quilting!

Teri

 

reading is fun-damental & a nip o’fun

I have a whole big bunch of e-books sitting in my to read in a file on my computer. It’s a great file to go to for quilty inspiration. Jean Wells has an update on Intuitive Color & Design that I’m looking forward to spending time with. Her work has influenced nearly all of my quilting life. So digging into this is high on the priority list.

All the Light you cannot see is next on the reading list, got it from the library. Tomorrow I’m flying out to St. Louis for Quilt Market and will have a layover in Atlanta. Reading time!

Today is some final Market Prep, laundry, packing, checking in for my flight. Making sure I have all of the electronic stuff necessary. Two meetings for Generation Q.

I’ll be doing facebook live vids from the show floor on both the GenQ page and my own personal page. The live vid with Tracy and Cheryl should be Sew Much Fun.

If you’re going to be at Market here’s your reminder about a few Market classes to take. And the Spring Clean Your Studio Blog Tour.

Oh! Oh! Yes the Dutchess Heritage Quilt Celebration.

There are classes to teach. And quilts to make. And fabric to fondle.

Happy Quilting!

Teri

And then it went WOOSH!

And then it went WOOSH!

There’s a great saying, “A high tide raises all ships”. You’re the ship, and I’m the tide. Encouraging, and supporting quilters in their endeavors, and watching them succeed is joyful.

In February Tracy Mooney and Cheryl Sleboda spoke at VDTA on Cosplay. Having attended talks, given talks, it’s rare that a room is silent, and people are taking notes. I did a facebook live through the Generation Q Magazine page for as long as I could. After that Tracy and Cheryl both were kind of quiet about it all.

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Earlier this week they announced Sew Much Cosplay, and their new line of products with RNK/Floriani. I asked them, “What is the most surprising, and most fun part of this process?

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Cheryl: The most challenging part? That’s easy, you’re building this awesome thing and you’re dying to tell everyone, but you can’t.

Tracy: I do agree! It was awful! I wanted to tell everyone and Cheryl kept telling me no.

Cheryl: I think at one point it felt like it was moving so slow that we’d never be able to tell anyone.

Tracy: And then it went WOOSH!

Cheryl: The most fun part has been realizing all of the cool things you want to make, both products and education. We can get sidetracked with brainstorming all of the cosplays we both want to make for the business.

TERI: So what’s the first thing you want to make

Cheryl: sent the link to this very cool dress

Tracy: I can’t wait to start building armor. We are going to have some new products and stabilizers that will bridge the gap between the hard armor and soft sewn Cosplay. I’m really excited about that.

Very soon the products will be on the website, and they will be offering classes. Oh I did ask the impertinent question of Cheryl, “will you be wearing the dress to Market”. She won’t but it’s such a great dress!

I’m not quite sure which site yet, but there will be a facebook live debuting the new products. Cheryl is giving a class on Cosplay Friday morning at 8 AM during Quilt Market. Tracy’s class will be Sunday at 8 AM on Adaptive Sewing Techniques. Let your shop owner know about these classes.

As I’ve mentioned I’ll be at Quilt Market with appointments for the magazine and looking for a day job. I hope to see you there!

Happy Quilting!

Teri

PS visit Sara Mika of Mock Pie Studio for her Spring Clean Your Studio blog tour day.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that

 

@swirlygirlsdesign @michaelmillerfabrics #hellofabric Just needs binding. #quiltsrule

A post shared by Teri Lucas (@terilucas) on

I finished quilting a quilt top this afternoon. It was so fun. The quilting is decidedly not my usual style, but the quilt is so fun and quirky.

Along the top of the quilt I wrote “hello” all over it, and quilted in the hashtag #quiltsrule

In a few places I wrote hello backwards, in others upside down while stitching. It’s a quilting superpower.

A long time ago, in a far, far galaxy lived a quilter who used her sewing machine a lot, a whole lot. She sent it to get cleaned and oiled, and the tech scolded her because there was a lot of lint. This quilter from a far, far away galaxy snorted, because she quilted every single day. The tech reiterated his displeasure at the amount of lint. The quilter wasn’t bothered. Then she found this:

http://weallsew.com/how-to-remove-lint-from-your-sewing-machine/

The thing is that taking care of our machines is like taking care of our vehicles. They need regular maintenance, and there are things we can’t quite get to and a quick visit to the We All Sew Blog will show where the lint goes, and why the tech was eager to share his displeasure. I should have taken my machine in sooner. At the time I was taking my machine in every 2 years, with the amount of quilting I was doing every year would have been a better idea.

I’m off to quilt some more. The Moon is Made of Cheese is calling to me asking for a little attention. As is all the crap – sewing supplies – on my floor waiting for me to spend time tidying up. Speaking of tidying up the Spring Clean Your Studio Blog Tour continues!

Oh and check this out! Sew Much Cosplay by Cheryl Sleboda and Tracy Mooney. Oh this is so amazing. I’ll have more from this dynamic duo soon.

Have a totally fab day!

We get by with a little help from our friends inQuilt Market Classes!

photo_20161030_180753Good friends, like good wine are a rare gift and a distinct pleasure.
As a quilter I’ve been blessed with some good friends. Several who are teaching at Quilt Market in St. Louis.

Tracy Mooney, Senior Editor of Generation Q Magazine – Keep Your Customers Sewing: Adaptive techniques to keep your customers sewing and quilting longer. Tracy has Sjogrens, an autoimmune related to lupus that causes fatigue and has her exploring ways to keep her passion for quilting, sewing, teaching, and writing going. She’s one of those people I “go to” when the world seems to be spinning off it’s axis.

Cheryl Sleboda, Muppin Inc: What is Cosplay? And why should my shop care? I had the privilege of attending Cheryl, Tracy, and Toni’s presentation at VDTA in February. The standing room only crowd was quiet and taking notes! Cosplay has been around for a while and is a way to engage a broad range of customers, it’s incredibly creative, and body positive. Cosplay is a breath of fresh air and a way to grow.

Building up  your Branding Learn the tips and tricks to build brand awareness both by design and by accident! Learn the strategies that elevate your business and how to leverage your brand across social media. These are the kinds of things that will help us stand out in the ever widening crowd, help us define who we are, what our niche is, and how to make the most of it. This is the stuff!

Ebony Love Blogging is not dead yet – How to get your blog off life support. She’s right, in so many ways. Whether you’ve been blogging for a long time, or are new Ebony will help you nurture that blogging spirit and keep it lively. This is a time when we need reminders of the good work we always like to do.

Independent Publishing – From Idea to book in 6 months or less. Here’s how to tackle that original, idea and publish yourself. Take this one!!

kelly ann and teri Market a while agoKelly Ann Richardson Quilt Shop Owners and Designers – Building Relationships In Kelly Ann’s words: I believe in building strong relationships, not just in my personal life but in my business which is why this year at Spring Quilt Market I will be presenting a seminar “Quilt Shop Owners and Designers-Building Relationships”. I’ve spent the last 12 years in business building relationships with quilt shop owners and designers, working together and sometimes making the difficult decision to walk away from some of those relationships. I’ve included time for some healthy discussion on how to break up, build up and form some lasting relationships. This is so essential to our growth and health.

Maddie Kertay Shaking the Money Tree Without Wallowing in a Discount Culture Promote your store and sales with effective programs that don’t center on discounts to get people in the door.

Campgraphical – Beginners Guide to Creating Media for Quilt Shops Enjoy techniques and resources plus hands-on practice to gain experience and confidence with
modern media.

20161030_110948Alex Anderson & Kay Brooks Are you Working for Yourself or Your Suppliers Are your suppliers making more profit margin than you? You deserve more and we will show you how to get it!

Roseann Kermes How to Teach a Successful Wool Applique Class Includes basic stitches, supply list for add-on sales, lesson plan, and tips for a successful class. Take home a cute finished coaster for a shop display.

The quilting community is rich in depth and character. I’m happy to call each and every one of these amazing people, friend.

Happy Quilting and Building,

Teri

 

The Whoopie Pies were good and then

quilt market 2014 tracy teri
Tracy Mooney and me in Pittsburgh

No sewing this week. Under the needle sits the quilt started last week, that has a due date quickly approaching. I’ll probably finish binding on the plane to St. Louis in a few weeks. Perfectly normal, I tell  ya. So why no sewing?

My brother and I made plans to meet for lunch on Friday. It’s been a while since I’ve been in the City. Part of me misses going, part of me not so much. So I get my patootie out of bed, and pulled something in my low back between my hips. The stars were so beautiful. So very pretty, something to capture in a quilt pretty. I made it into the City and did a little bit of walking around finding the location of Candy’s Quilting. Once Candace and Charles get closer to opening I’m going to go in a do a facebook live and show everyone the cool digs.

Thankfully my brother was a little later and my very slow walking was completed before he arrived. We had burgers and a beer for lunch. Good burgers at Schleppers on 23rd. We talked a bit of business related stuff. He’s wicked smaht.

So rather than sewing, which I wanted to do, I’ve been reading the next book in the Outlander Series. Thanks Jake. So this afternoon, after not being able to stitch over the weekend, I’m heading to the sewing room and getting some stitching in. Watch my instagram later for a photo or two.

Coming soon

And then she said

So I started this post the other day, having something on my mind that “she said.” I’m fairly certain it was good and funny because I’m kinda hilarious like that.  Tracy Mooney and I tried to host a GenQ Happy Hour, technical difficulties prevented the full happy hour from happening. Eh whatever…so I had a quick facebook live:

We have so much more to share, and are planning our next Happy Hour. And I’ve offered to answer machine quilting questions so please feel free to visit our facebook page and post the question there.

Several years ago I started Editors and Publishers Day, December 16th in gratitude for, well, editors and publishers. The cast of characters is long, and as the quilting world leads, I meet and interact with more of both, and learn to appreciate their skills and respect their work.

jake laughs again
So there’s a story here, I made Jake snort. I have to say it was a pretty dang funny moment that I will forever and a day cherish. Not to mention we were eating a great meal at Pappadeux’s.

There are moments when writing like Jake is a long term goal. She’s a good reporter, with a clear, and well developed style. I sent her copy one night to look over before I sent it somewhere, the conversation included a distinct lack of commas, and how they allow the reader to breathe. This got me thinking about how I speak as well, there is an ingrained habit of asking rapid fire questions that the listener doesn’t know which one to ask first. Often this is nerves on my part, or a distinct curiosity, either way you go. Breathing, and commas play an important role for both the writer and the listener. I can assure you writing differently would make it easier for both Jake and Melissa when I write a post for the Generation Q Magazine blog, or an article for our pages.

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We were having dinner together after Quilt Market. This was a pretty special moment that I’m grateful to have captured.

And then there’s Melissa who has two unique talents I long to develop. The first in an ability to edit the writer so they sound like more of who they are. It’s a beautiful thing being able to tweak someones writing that way. The second is an uncanny ability to see trends, of her many talents my gut says this is the one I have the greatest chance of learning from her. Well that, and better writing skills. I may have mentioned that I’d like to be Editor-in-Chief of GenQ someday.

And while I’m at it Tracy, our Senior Editor, is pretty dang talented as well. Between herding kittens, editing blog posts, writing copy for our pages, and coming up with projects for the We Sew 2. As a long time quilter Tracy sees trends, and knows a lot of quilters. She also has a gift for words so live or recorded video is fun. Together I think we keep Melissa and Jake on their toes, and occasionally doubled over in laughter. Okay, more than occasionally.

Live your brightest life 1

For my part there is a lot of room for growth and I’m open to it. I’m grateful to Jake and Melissa for taking on the role of mentor to anyone on our staff. Yes, yes, I know the leading, guiding, directing, editing, and occasionally pulling the hair out is part of the “job” however, there’s something more to this mentoring. And this blogger, writer, quilter is truly grateful for their influence.

Happy Editors and Publishers Day!

Teri